Joanne Wilson Gotham Gal

The Woman­ Empowering Angel Investor

In addition to her impressive investment portfolio including 17 startups (13 of which are women-founded), Joanne Wilson is cofounder of the Women Entrepreneur Festival. She is an avid writer with a massive following on her blog, Gotham Gal.

At the age of 22, Wilson was responsible for the second largest cosmetics departments at Macy’s, responsible for overseeing 100 employees. She tried many careers in various industries, moving from retail to wholesale and then to media technology. Wilson experimented in friends’ businesses, led sales of a startup company called Silicon Alley Reporter, and chaired the nonprofit MOUSE (Making Opportunities in Upgrading Schools in Education). The organization focused on technology in inner­-city schools.

In 2008, after encouragement from her husband (a partner at Union Square Ventures) and an interest in the company Curbed, Wilson launched her career as an angel investor. She focuses primarily on companies owned or founded by women, ranging from coffee shops to tech. Wilson’s successful investments include Blue Bottle Coffee, Food52, Nestio, TaxiTreats, DailyWorth, and Kitchensurfing, among others.